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Director-General deplores the death of journalist Timur Kuashev and calls for a thorough investigation

The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, called for a thorough investigation into the death of the journalist Timur Kuashev in the Russian Federation Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria.

“It is important for press freedom and for journalists to be able to carry out their professional duties without fearing for their lives. I trust that the authorities will spare no efforts in shedding light into the circumstances of the death of Timur Kuashev,” the Director-General said.

Kuashev, 26, was a correspondent for Dosh, a current affairs magazine about the North Caucasus. He also wrote for Caucasian Knot and Caucasus Politics, web portals covering the region.

The lifeless body of Timur Kuashev was found in the suburbs of Nalchik, the capital of Kabardina-Balkaria on 1 August, one day after he had gone missing. Kuashev is reported to have received numerous threats to his life in recent years.

UNESCO maintains a dedicated web page,UNESCO condemns the killing of journalists, in line with Resolution 29, adopted by UNESCO Member States at the Organization’s General Conference in 1997, entitled “Condemnation of Violence against Journalists.”

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Media contact: Sylvie Coudray, +33 (0) 1 45 68 42 12

UNESCO is the United Nations agency with a mandate to defend freedom of expression and press freedom. Article 1 of its Constitution requires the Organization to “further universal respect for justice, for the rule of law and for the human rights and fundamental freedoms which are affirmed for the peoples of the world, without distinction of race, sex, language or religion, by the Charter of the United Nations.” To realize this the Organization is requested to “collaborate in the work of advancing the mutual knowledge and understanding of peoples, through all means of mass communication and to that end recommend such international agreements as may be necessary to promote the free flow of ideas by word and image…”